Editorial

Abstract

Much of the material in this issue is concerned with communication, but communication is much more than simply a means whereby information and knowledge is transferred between people. It is influenced by culture and by the social and policy contexts in which it takes place. In the primary health care area, meaningful communication is possibly even more important and more difficult than in any other area of the health system. It is more difficult, for example, because of the principles of primary health care to which practitioners subscribe, including the empowerment of those who would seek access to the system, re-orienting the health sector, and intersectoral co-operation in attempting to improve health and health services. The contributors demonstrate that in primary health care and in thinking about what is health, what influences it, how is it perceived, and how is it to be improved, there are theoretical and practical ways of and approaching such issues.